Improved device for transferring freight on railways



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

L. SAVAGE. Transferring Freight on Railways.

No. 89,437. Patented April 27, 1869 M ag-2%:

2 Sheets-Sheei 2. ,.L- SAVAGE.

v Transferring Freight on Railways. 7 N,o.'89,437. Patent ed April 27, 1869.

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arsaw L. SAVAGE, OF ASHTABU LA, OHIO.

Letters Patent No. 89,437, dated April 27, 1869; antedated April 16, 1869.

IIIPROVED DEVICE FOR TRANSPERRING FREIGHT ON RAILWAY 'S.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, L. SAVAGE, of Ashtabula, in the county of Ashtabula, and State of Ohio,- have invented a new and useful Improvement in Loading and Unloading Freight-Oars and I do hereby declare that 'the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a general plan view, showing the platforms and the mechanism for supporting the freightboxes.

Figure 2 is a top view of the movable rails and the accessory mechanism of the same.

Figure 3'is a sectional elevation, showing a side view of the movable rails with a case placed thereon.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts.

The object of my invention is to enable freightcars to be unloaded or loaded in an easy and expeditious manner.

This I accomplish by means of cars and detachable boxes, which boxes are supported by suitable mechanism, while the rails bearing the cars lowered, so that the cars can be run out from under the supported boxes, and other cars run under the said boxes, which are then lowered upon the last cars.

The rails are raised by means of shafts bearing eccentrics, which latter act under the rails, the said shafts being suitably connected to obtain their simultaneous action. v

The weight of the boxes is first taken up and sustained by eccentrics on shafts suitably connected and supported on platforms at each side .of the track, the said eccentrics projecting beyond the platforms, so as to. come under the projecting ends of cross-timbers affixed to the bottom of the boxes.

The rails are then lowered and the ears changed, when the boxes are lowered upon the cars of the next road.

By means of my invention, freight bound over two or more roads can be easily and expeditiously transferred to the ears of each road, thus obviating the necessity of handling the freight at each junction, or

of passing the cars of one road along the line of other roads.

My invention will be more clearly understood by reference to the drawings, in which- A and B, fig. 1, are the tracks of two different roads, the intersection of which is, in practice, provided with poys, or a turn-table, or V-track, or any other known contrivanoe for passing from one track to the other.

O O and l) l) are platforms, or piers of masonry, arranged at the side of each track, as shown.

E and G rc freight-boxes, and which are intended to pass to their destination without being unloaded.

These, then, must be transferred to the platform cars of each road at the junction of such roads, and to accomplish this the car from one road, as the road A, is run between the platforms D D of that road.

The freight-box is not affixed to the car, but merely rests upon it. i

The rails at the platforms are not affixed to the sleepers, but are capable of being raised and lowered a few inches, and must be in a raised position, when the loaded car is run in between the platforms.

The platform eccentrics are then turned to take the weight of the loaded box, when the rails are lowered and the car run out from under the supported box.

The car of the road B is then shifted to the road A and run under the box E, when the latter is lowered upon it.

The same operation maybe performed on the other road, if required, and, in practice, it would be preferable to have shifting-platforms for each road, so that freight bound both ways could exchange cars at once in the manner described.

The projecting ends of the bottom cross-timbers of the boxes are shown at a, fig. 1.

Against these the eccentrics b of the platforms act, when the shafts d, bearing the said eccentric, are turned.

These shafts are connected by rods, e, connecting arms on the shafts d, as shown.

f is a lever-handle on one of the shafts, to actuate them by.

The shafts d have suitable hearings in ,the platforms.

The rails are raised and lowered by means of eccentrics g, on shafts h, as shown.

The arms of the latter shafts are also connected by rods t', to obtain their simultaneous movement, when the lever-handle f, on one of the shafts, is moved.

The rails are affixed to plates 70, which travel on vertical guide-bolts, as shown.

It will be seen that in operating these contrivances the loaded ear or box is not raised, as the rails are raised before the car comes upon them, and platform eccentrics are only turned to impinge snugly against the projections a. r

The mechanism comprised in this invention is of the simplest forms and not liable to get out of reor platforms, arranged on each side of the track, and provided with suitable devices for taking the weight of the box, when the same are employed in combination with the rails arranged to raise and lower, all substantially as herein shown and described.

2. The mechanism for raising and supporting the freight-box, consisting of the eccentrics b 11, arranged on the inner ends of the rods d d, the latter being provided with arms connected by rods 0 c, all operated by the lever f, asherein set forth and described.

3. The eccentrics g g, shafts hh, rods 6 i and l, and lever j, as herein described, when employed to raise and lower the rails for the purpose herein set forth.

Witnesses A. 0. Groomers, WM. SEYMOUR.

L. SAVAGE. 

